Beef short ribs are tough cuts of meat so do very well as a slow cooked braise.
This simple and comfort food version is delicious with carrots, onions and bunches of fresh thyme and rosemary. The the one thing that really takes it up a notch is the use of seasonal beer like Chestnut beer during the holidays or hard apple cider during other times.
The meat is first seared in hot oil for a gorgeous browning thanks to the Maillard reactions at play and then stewed for a long time. Best cooked in the oven for a long time, it also turns out spectacular on the stove top when schedules demands so. But what really takes this heavy, stick-to-ribs comfort food and transforms it into a refreshing experience for the palate is the gremolata.
Gremolata is simple fresh herbs (such as parsley) chopped up, mixed with some fresh and fragrant lemon zest with a pungent dash of garlic or grated horseradish. It truly is above and beyond a garnish and turns the meal into a real treat for the palate as well as the olfactory senses.
You really do need to serve this on top of yummy, fluffy, cheesy soft polenta. The recipe for that, is coming up next!
Every day I grow exceedingly fond of salted cod, bacalhau.
I adore the texture, the meatiness and the flavor that is so unlike fresh cod. And what started out as a necessity on those large voyages when the Portuguese set out across the Atlantic to colonize Brazil, has evolved into a culinary delight that is quintessentially Brazilian.
There are several versions of bacalhau or salted cod stew and I love the one I blogged a few weeks earlier - here
This version is a completely different take on the previous one with a few more steps - boiled potatoes, oil cured olives - kalamata or a mix, boiled eggs, roasted red peppers, sauteed onions and poached, flaked salted cod are all baked together in layers with generous glugs of olive oil.
Wonderfully flavorful all together, just the ingredient list makes me want to do a happy dance!
I recommend this for a weekend dinner or when company is over. It makes quite an impression, I guarantee! Some wonderful bread and a nice crisp white wine is all that you need.
Mind you, you'll need to begin at least 24 hours in advance to de-salt the cod and this is a step by no means you want to miss.
I've always said that the simplest things to make are perhaps sometimes the hardest.
Because they have technique to them.
And in some ways it can be really easy - follow the rules and you'll succeed each and every time. But you know us, we're muggles and that means some times we get lazy.
With fried calamari, do neither and every restaurant in town is going to want to hire you as their next fried calamari guy or gal because you'll really be that good.
When we think of fried calamari, what are some of the challenges we face?
- a big one is that the flour coating simply falls away to the bottom of the pan leaving the calamari naked.
- the second is tough and soggy calamari.
There are two big rules of thumbs - gospel if you will and they are (drum roll...),
1) Use a flour coating that is finer than all purpose flour and therefore a combination of cornstarch and WONDRA (a enriched flour available in a blue can made by General Mills) or a fine barley flour does the trick.
2) The temperature of the oil - 375 deg F. No two ways about it and I mean even between batches.
You know how it is, you'll make a perfect 1st batch but come the second, you don't want to stand around waiting for the oil to heat back up to 375 but you've got to do it!
It has to do with the critical temperature the calamari must reach at which point it is perfectly succulent and that requires an oil temp of 375 deg F.
Adding the cool calamari to hot oil means that there is a transfer of heat that takes place which means the calamari draws heat from the oil thereby cooling the oil. So you must get it back up.
This requires a candy/deep frying thermometer because you can't do this by guess work. You've got to be that accurate.
That being said, once you've got your flour, a sieve, a candy/deep frying thermometer and hot oil, you're all set. This economical cephalopods will become a favorite and you won't get enough of it - at family dinners, for guests and just for yourself.
And you'll be proud. Because perfectly fried calamari deserves accolades.
Thank You
for all your entries for the 'Make Your Wish' Emile Henry giveaway. The
contest is now closed.
This giveaway is a pretty big deal for me. It's my
first!And secondly, the giveaway is a product I love and have been
cooking with for a very long time - long before this blog.
What's
even more special is YOU get to choose the dish YOU want!
(Thanks
to all of you who have already sent in your comments :)
Why do I love my Emile Henry Cookware?
For one, they're a family
owned business that has been around since 1850 and started in a small
town in the
province of Burgundy, France.
The company to date
manufactures all of
their new cooking products from Burgundy clay.
Here's
the long and short of it -
Burgundy
clay evenly and slowly diffuses cooking heat to the very
center of the cooking dish.
Emile
Henry products do not chip
or crack easily. One can cut
directly on the surface without scratching or damaging the product.
There is
no lead or cadmium and all of the products are 100% food safe.
All Emile
Henry products can go in the dishwasher.
All Emile
Henry products carry a limited household three (3) year
warranty against breakage due to defective workmanship.
The reason I personally love their
products is because they last and last. I am not one to go pot and dish
shopping every week so I look for quality and it's got to be a sound
investment.
And because I hate clutter, I want dishes that
can be used for more than one kind of dish - I am going to bake a
lasagna and expect the same pan to work for a crumble and the pie dish
to work for a crostata.
So I hope you are convinced!
TO WIN THE DISH
- you've always wished, follow these instructions -
2) Go to the Emile Henry USA website by
going here. Click
on the
Ovenware/Cookware/Bakeware sections. Browse & share your wish dish
with me. Don't forget to specify your color of choice.
3) Share a
personal cooking story or your favorite recipe that you'll cook in your
NEW Emile Henry dish ( I will feature this on the blog when I announce
the winner)
Simply
add
your answers as a comment.
Sincere apologies to my
International friends but at this time the giveaway is open to the
people of the US only.
Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.
The competition
ends
at 9.00 PM (EST) 15th of June, 2010.
Winner will be announced shortly after!
Good luck,
everyone!
I am looking forward to reading
your
entries =)
Love,
Devaki
PS - If you've already
previously sent me your comment you're done! No need to re-send :)
~
In some ways it is fitting that as the blog has reached its 6 month mark, I have been noticeably absent.
Since I began the blog, this has been my first week off from all things blog related. As much as I love writing & cooking about food & paying a visit to my fellow foodie bloggers, I enjoy spontaneous trips in equal measure.
So as the long holiday weekend approached here in the US and coincided with the kids starting their summer holidays and the 6 month blog birthday, we decided to get away from it all. And when I mean get away, I mean get away - no cell phones, no wi-fi & a just a brush with civilization.
And so off we went to a place we have wanted to visit for a very long time.
Now because of its remote location, the travel also involved one my favorite aspects, a road trip.
I love road trips - there is nothing more exhilarating than watching the road disappear below ones wheels, the anticipation that fills the air as you calculate the remaining distances on a map, endless cups of java picked up at truck stops, the squeals of delights from the back seat because we passed grazing cows, the crunch of crispy potato chips, the endless potty breaks (of course) if you're traveling with little ones like we were but more than all of this - the opportunity to be surprised, not knowing what awaits you as you turn the corner.
As we drove down the winding road that cuts through the belly of the vast expanses and stunning views, Mr. Hubby looked me and asked, "Do you hear that" and I asked "What?" And he said, "Silence".
So though this post is not about food - it about
what inspires us, what humbles us & what awes us. 'The food for the
soul' which is just as important if not more than 'the food for the belly'.
As for recipes, we will return to it soon enough! So fix yourself a cuppa & enjoy....
Only a Visitor
From here, for as long as the eye can see, is "designated wilderness" - park lands governed by the strictest preservation standards. What makes this place so special?
Vastness, solitude, wildness & challenge
It is more than legislated lines drawn on a map. Here, is an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor & does not remain.
US Wilderness Act, 1964
The Ocotillo Patch - These wonderful deciduous shrubs with beautiful red flowers on their tips, drop their leaves as many as 5 times a year
Vast expanses, stunning views
The park is full of rocks that look like weather beaten ruins
Nothing quite like the Cholla - these beauties come with a warning. Even the slightesttouch will result in thorns embedded in the flesh that are painful & nearly impossible to remove.
Surreal Cholla
What's a road trip if you can't stop & look for critters?
Who said the desert has no color?
Nothing quite like 'Jumbo Rocks'! Wow!
Unforgettable rock formations & wonderful to walk through and climb on.
Here are the Joshua trees - where the park gets its name.
Very spooky, looking down at the San Andreas fault. I never knew you can actually see the bloody thing!
No wonder these trees have been considered akin to Aliens!
I hope that you've enjoyed a glimpse of these wondrous sights.
Moving on, I am excited to announce that on the eve of the
blog's birthday (May 31), the blog was featured on Foodista as
the featured blog of the day.
THANK YOU!
Thank You
for all your entries for the 'Make Your Wish' Emile Henry giveaway. The
contest is now closed.
